The term sui generis is a Latin expression that means that something is of its genus or species and that it has unique characteristics. These are objects, animals or people that are out of the ordinary, that are difficult to classify and that are out of the ordinary.
The Royal Spanish Academy defines "sui géneris" as an adjective that is said of something that belongs to a singular and exceptional genre. The term comes from the Latin phrase sui generis, which means "of its kind" or "of its kind."
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It is correctly written in italics and with a tilde. However, it is also possible to find it written "suigeneris", all together.
The origin of the word sui géneris could be located in the 11th century, when the theological and philosophical scholastic current began to use it to refer to an idea or a reality that does not fit into a broader concept. In other words, something unique in its kind.
Meanings
The term sui generis can be applied in various areas.
In right
In this sense, it is applied lately in the creation of databases. The "sui géneris copyright" protects the substantial investment, evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively, that its manufacturer makes, whether in financial means, use of time, effort, energy or others of a similar nature, to obtain, verify or present its content.
This sui generis right does not recognize whoever creates the structure of the database, but who has the initiative to invest the necessary means for its creation.
Another meaning for sui generis is the legal concept that is imparted to any case that, given its particularity or rarity, needs a specific and unique understanding or interpretation by the judge.
In art
In Argentina, the term sui géneris is associated in the popular community with the rock band of the 1960s and 1970s that bore that name. Sui Géneris was integrated by the composer and singer Charly García, Nito Mestre and Pedro Aznar, among other members.
Their popularity spread throughout Latin America and their first period of activity was from 1969 to 1975, during which time they released four albums.
In Madrid, Spain, there is a very famous festival called "Sui Géneris Madrid", which defines itself as unusual, original and unique in the cultural environment. It is based on the projection of the urban Gothic subculture and each year it adds different disciplines of interest.
Synonyms
Some words that are similar to sui generis are "unmatched", "unclassifiable", "abnormal", "exceptional", "inimitable", "brilliant", "unpublished", "strange", "rare", "unique", or "exclusive".
Antonyms
Words that mean the opposite of sui generis are "ordinary", "common", "normal", "common", "frequent", "seen", "observed", "old", "old-fashioned", "old", 'Aged', 'obsolete' or 'archaic'.
Usage examples
- «Diego Maradona was a sui generis player in his time».
- "It is estimated that at the bottom of the oceans there are sui generis species totally unknown until now."
- «She has a very sui generis style in her dress«.
- "For being a sui generis in the political sphere, he was condemned by different media."
- "Giorgio Armani was a sui generis fashion designer for his time."
References
- Sui generis. (2019). Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy. Recovered from: dle.rae.es
- Carlos Rogel Vide. (2008). "Copyright Manual". Recovered from: books.google.it
- Juan Manuel Cibeira. (2016). "The rock bible: stories from Pelo magazine." Recovered from: books.google.it
- Sui Generis (2019). Your Generis Madrid. Recovered from: suigenerismadrid.com